Following a long-running stint on the Las Vegas Boulevard, the showgirls from the production Jubilee! executed their last synchronised kick in 2016. The extravaganza, renowned for its intricate costumes created by style icon Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and unimpressed commentators who described it as a spectacle “trapped in time”.
Today, nearly ten years later, the showgirl persona, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is making a comeback.
A Sultan of Glitz
Known as the “master of glitz”, Mackie has made theatrical showgirl glitz his signature style, clothing everyone from screen legends to Madonna. In a recent auction, a “see-through” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 commanded $57,600, well over its projected value, while a silver and gold beaded bodysuit with reflective wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 performance sold for $19,200.
“I think it looks more enticing for the younger performer who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he stated in an interview with a newspaper. “Today's artists are pushing toward a theatrical, more dramatic, show-stopping, memorable statement.”
A Mainstream Resurgence
It’s a look that sashayed all the way to the centre of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Recently, the cultural juggernaut wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, plumed armbands and shimmering headpiece were tailor-made for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
The singer has company. This year, showgirl inspirations have been incorporated by music artists including Miley Cyrus as they zoomed across arena stages in glitter, strategic openings and ostrich feathers, spotlighted against theatrical sets. Lipa’s stylist her creative director mentioned in an interview with a style publication he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – referencing pictures from the mid-century, Lipa’s dancers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from the Past
Modern stars and other chart toppers also reference classic performances, including burlesque and dance line references. The results are poles apart from the 90s pop style of crop tops and utilitarian trousers, and street-style dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are on board with this showgirl renaissance. A former performer, a former Jubilee! showgirl who performed in the 00s says the trend is “bemusing”. She thinks the word showgirl title is being “employed as an umbrella term including everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even modern pop stars.”
A Coveted Classic Look
For gen Z and modern stars, Mackie’s vintage designs have become highly covetable. In 2024, a style icon honored to one of Mackie’s iconic muses, Cher, when the actor wore a semi-sheer sequined dress created by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he created for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an undisclosed sum to buy the Mackie beaded mini dress she had worn earlier in the year to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a series of vintage Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a hit among fashion collectors.
“This style inspire nostalgia for a past glamour,” says an archivist, a curator at the University of Nevada, who researches the story of showgirls. “Today it is considered a sort of ‘toned-down’ appeal because it has been adapted. It has got all the glamour, the sparkles and the shine but without the bare skin.”
More Than Simply Fashion: An Symbol of Las Vegas
Chung says the showgirl image are central to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was surrounded by two showgirls. While Las Vegas no longer has any traditional showgirl productions, Jung says they are still employed as an symbol of the city, appearing at conventions and in marketing. “The showgirl is still a lasting symbol of Vegas glitz and glamour,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
Nancy Hardy says the magical transformation of a showgirl is part of the appeal. It’s something Swift hints at in a recent documentary series that documents the backstage action from her year-long 2023 Eras tour, which included gruelling rehearsals, gym sessions and numerous concerts across dozens of cities, each going on for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “similar to running a marathon in heels every night”. Her headdress tipped the scales at 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the stairs to the performance area from the dressing rooms three floors below in the underground. I had to start early for my entrance so I could catch my breath before I made my entrance. One is perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s simple and beautiful and dreamlike.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl really resides. In the complexity of 2025 there is a craving for a break from reality. Is there anyone better to turn to than these performers, who have always personified make-believe, perfection and a realm where nobody misses a mark.
